A new Barbados Metrology Bill 2022 was recently introduced in the House of Assembly. Minister of Energy and Business Development Kerrie Symmonds has said that the failure of align Barbados’ metrology with international standards (i.e., failure to fully adopt the metric system) has incurred economic costs. Nation News reports that “Consumers could soon be getting protection from the state in regards to having measurement systems across the board that align with international standards.”.
Continue reading “Barbados introduces new metrication bill”Category: Consumer affairs
Isle of Man spirits measures go metric
New metric spirits measures came into force in the Isle of Man on 30 September 2022. They replaced old imperial spirits measures of fluid ounces and gills. These new measures apply to spirits sold in pubs, clubs and restaurants. Spirits in the Isle of Man have gone metric because it is getting harder for licensees to obtain imperial measuring equipment for spirits.
Continue reading “Isle of Man spirits measures go metric”Which? exposes poor grasp of unit pricing
The Which? consumer group published its most recent investigation about unit pricing on 23 August 2022, asking “Can you spot the cheapest supermarket prices?”. If you cannot do this, you could be missing out on huge savings. The ability to use unit pricing to get the best deals is a critical skill in the cost-of-living crisis.
Continue reading “Which? exposes poor grasp of unit pricing”Household items and litre measurements
Here is a simple method to find the litre capacity of household items you want to replace when you have lost all sources of information about their capacity. This method demonstrates a clear and simple relationship between centimetres and litres.
Continue reading “Household items and litre measurements”Imperial return is part of Brexit symbolism
The return of imperial units is part of a wider range of symbolic changes that are coming as a result of Brexit.
Continue reading “Imperial return is part of Brexit symbolism”How to respond to imperial-only measurement proposals
The Government has published its “Choice on units of measurement: markings and sales” consultation document about their plans to remove the requirement for traders to show the metric equivalent alongside imperial units.
Continue reading “How to respond to imperial-only measurement proposals”Taking us back to the 1970’s
There are a number of similar phenomena between our post-COVID times and the 1970’s. One of them is the Government proposing to allow traders to sell using imperial-only again, forcing customers to once again have to resort to conversion calculations to compare prices.
Continue reading “Taking us back to the 1970’s”Anti-imperial petition tops 1600 signatures
A popular anti-imperial petition on the official parliamentary petitions website has attracted a large number of signatures and is still growing fast. It opposes the Government’s recent imperial-only measurements proposals for trade.
Continue reading “Anti-imperial petition tops 1600 signatures”Queen’s Jubilee celebrations to include return of imperial units?
Over the weekend, various news items announced (again) that it was the Government’s intention for us to return to the use of imperial units.
Continue reading “Queen’s Jubilee celebrations to include return of imperial units?”
The 1972 White Paper on Metrication – 50 years on
2022 sees the 50th anniversary of the 1972 White Paper on Metrication – a policy document that set out the Government’s plans for the nation’s metrication programme in the 1970s.
The publication of the White Paper was approved at a Cabinet meeting held on Tuesday 11 January 1972.
Continue reading “The 1972 White Paper on Metrication – 50 years on”
